Changing the way organizations change: a revolution of common sense
Article Abstract:
This article describes the history, practical applications, and possible future of a unique and powerful technology for changing the way that organizations change: whole systems changing themselves in real time. This technology addresses several key challenges to bringing about change in large and complex organizations: (a) increased ownership of and commitment to change efforts by all interested and affected parties, (b) faster implementation of plans rather than merely leaving more "binders on shelves" at the end of the day, and (c) ongoing decisions made by organization members aligned behind the organization's overall strategic direction, thereby creating significant leverage for change. This article illustrates how groups of up to 600 people working interactively can collaborate in creating their own and their organization's future. Two case studies demonstrate the successful application of this technology to implementing strategy and total quality management. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-8863
Year: 1992
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Sanding down the edges: paradoxical impediments to organizational change
Article Abstract:
In contrast to population ecology and new institutionalist approaches that cite the external environment as the culprit for inertia, this article steps inside the organization to show how internal processes render change ineffective. It is argued that the very same processes described in the literature as prerequisites for success are paradoxically those that make change less likely to occur. Detailed examples of failed organizational change from a Fortune 50 corporation and a metropolitan teaching hospital illustrate the ways in which the organizational system not only sands down the sharp edges of ambitious change agendas, but also uses the change process itself as fuel for perpetuating the status quo. The final section relates these basic paradoxes to deeper roots of change in social systems and suggests ways of changing the way we change in light of the resiliency and resistance of the organizational system. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-8863
Year: 1999
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The transcendent function in organizational change
Article Abstract:
The conflict inherent in organizational change is explored from the perspective of Jungian psychology. The transcendent function, which is the symbol-creating capacity of the psyche, is the process through which the opposition of conscious and unconscious forces can be integrated and resolved so that organization members may experience a positive change. Manifestations of the unconscious are illustrated with examples of dreams and the underused psychological functions. Examples also demonstrate how the tension between the conscious and the unconscious can be maintained until a new level of understanding, a creative resolution of conflict, or a transformation in perception occurs. The author discusses how consultants may use this approach in team building and other organization development work. (Reprinted by permission of the publisher.)
Publication Name: Journal of Applied Behavioral Science
Subject: Social sciences
ISSN: 0021-8863
Year: 1990
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